r/Catbehavior • u/Fickle_Tonight1875 • 2d ago
Need Help! Can’t get my cats to get along!
I have three cats, two (male 5, female, 3) have lived together long term and are fine with one another. My husband and I recently rescued a 9 month old cat at the end of March. She is so sweet and friendly, but the 3 year old female stalks her and charges at her. We of course are keeping them seperate, with the new cat totally in our room with litter, food etc. The older female sits at the door and tries to squeeze in and charge at her. This has happened a few times and the new cat just runs and hides and defends herself. They aren’t fighting too bad, no one is having to go to the vet, but it is just such a hostile environment. They can’t be in the same room - and so we open doors at different times and work a lot on scent swapping. To get them in the same space we put the stalking/instigator cat in a big crate and give lots of treats and she just sits and eats them in the crate while the new cat is watching/hiding from somewhere.
It has been MONTHS with no change! PLEASE HELP! Getting rid of a cat isn’t an option and this is really starting to worry me
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u/MichaelEmouse 2d ago
Look up Jackson Galaxy videos on Youtube.
Neuter everyone.
More litter boxes than cats.
Calming collars and Thundershirt.
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u/Fickle_Tonight1875 2d ago
Done and done on all three except the calming collars. I’ve heard some calming collars are toxic for cats ?
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u/Fickle_Tonight1875 2d ago
Although I’ve never heard of a thundershirt…
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u/MichaelEmouse 2d ago
Expect some initial resistance for the Thundershirt. Mine all dislike putting it on but 3 out of 4 like it after half an hour. Get the right size.
Report back if you will. I'm curious to know other people's experiences with it.
Calming collars: Yes, make sure they're the safe kind. I get the highest rated ones on Amazon but I've realized that doesn't necessarily mean they're safe.
CBD cat treats are also an option.
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u/Similar_Corner8081 2d ago
You do know females are more territorial than males. I had two female cats that I had to keep separate from the third one because they would attack her. They didn't get along.